Dell, Alienware announce Ryzen, Threadripper gaming systems

Alienware has announced that it is redoubling its efforts in the high-performance gaming and virtual reality markets, including the impending launch of gaming PCs based on AMD's Threadripper chips, while corporate overlord Dell has announced an own-brand gaming desktop with liquid-cooling as standard.

Announced during the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), Alienware's message to gamers is clear: 'Our fans’ passion for Alienware and our gaming PCs is our lifeblood,' claimed Frank Azor, vice president and general manager of Alienware as well as Dell's gaming and XPS divisions, 'and it’s only through our equal passion and commitment in delivering bleeding-edge innovation, design and performance, that we continue to exceed expectations and deliver on their requests.'

That promise of bleeding-edge innovation, Azor has claimed, is present and correct in the company's upcoming Area-51 hardware refresh which will include the option of AMD's Ryzen-based Threadripper chips - the first time Alienware has offered a 16-core, 32-thread machine. According to the company's announcement, Dell and its Alienware subsidiary are the exclusive OEM launch partner for Threadripper-based pre-builds - though the timing of this exclusivity has not been revealed. The machines themselves, Azor revealed, will be launched in the UK in early September, while models based around Intel's Core X-series chips will hit the market slightly earlier on August 22nd.

At the same time, Alienware announced that it was branching out into the peripherals market: The Alienware Advanced Gaming Keyboard is based on linear 'brown' switches - though the company did not clarify if these are true Cherry MX Brown or third-party compatible switches - and includes five dedicated macro keys at an £84.99 (inc VAT) retail price; the Alienware Pro Gaming Keyboard adds a dedicated volume roller and 13-zone 'AlienFX' RGB lighting for a £119.99 (inc VAT) launch price; the Alienware Advanced Gaming Mouse offers an ergonomic design, on-the-fly DPI switching, and nine customisable buttons for £44.99 (inc VAT); and the Alienware Elite Gaming Mouse adds swappable grips, 13 programmable buttons, and four weight adjustment levels for £89.99 (inc. VAT). All announced peripherals have a UK launch date of July 14th.

The company is also getting back into the monitor game, announcing the Alienware 25" Gaming Monitor in Nvidia G-Sync or AMD FreeSync compatible flavours. In either case, the monitors are claimed to offer 1ms panel response time, a native 240Hz refresh rate, and a thin bezel in Full HD (1,920x1,080) resolution. An early July launch date has been promised, but pricing was not revealed as part of the announcement.

Finally, Dell and Alienware also announced plans to launch an Alienware 15 gaming laptop based around Nvidia's slimline Max-Q design, a Dell-branded Inspiron Gaming Desktop featuring AMD Ryzen processors, 'Polar Blue' LED lighting, easy component access, power supplies up to 850W for additional hardware, and options for dual-GPU Nvidia or AMD graphics and liquid-cooling. Pricing has been revealed as starting at £699.99 (inc VAT) with an early July launch date.